The Compost - Willimantic Food Co-op

The Compost
Vol. 36, Number 3
91 Valley Street
Willimantic, CT 06226
860.456.3611
[email protected]
www.willimanticfood.coop
STORE HOURS:
Monday - Saturday
9:00am - 8:00pm
Sunday
9:00am - 6:00pm
Inside
Holidays 2014
Co-op Scoop Alice Rubin
Time sure does fly. How can summer be gone already? As I write
this, it is snowing in Maine. What? Snow? I have finally finished storing
all of my produce for the winter. It was quite a project, thanks to an incredible growing season. Because of this fantastic growing season – not
too hot, not too wet, the Co-op was able to provide everyone with record
amounts of locally grown produce – do you remember all of those beautiful heirloom tomatoes? We have never seen the likes of that. Not only
was it a great growing season, but also a great time to start farming, and
we have seen several new farmers taking the plunge. This is great for all
of us who shop at the Co-op and Farmers’ Markets, as well as our entire
community, as farms make good use of the land. I am thankful that more
people are finding farming to be a viable option to make a livelihood.
Actually, I am thankful for a lot of things - certainly for the Co-op.
It has given me an opportunity to make my livelihood doing something
I love, for many years. I feel lucky to have met so many amazing people
while working here, that I never would have met otherwise. I am thankful that the Co-op is able to give back to the community - last year we
were able to make donations to many local non-profits, and we hope to
do the same again this year. I am glad to be a part of that.
I am thankful for our staff, and our Board of Directors who work really hard to make the Co-op a great place.
I am thankful for all of the small businesses in Willimantic. It is not
an easy place to succeed, yet many stick it out and do thrive, encouraging others to give it a whirl.
I am thankful for all of the people across the country who are working toward the labeling of GMOs. It is a huge battle, and people have
not given up even though success is slow. General Mills now touts GMO
free Cheerios. Even though I don’t eat Cheerios, this makes me happy.
It means that peoples’ voices have been heard, and acknowledged. I am
thankful for that.
I could go on and on with a list of things I am thankful for, but it
would get boring. It’s a good exercise, to remember what I am thankful
for. It is sometimes hard to remember, when things are not going well or
life seems too hard. There is that, the hard parts, but also the everyday,
really good things that I sometimes forget are really great.
Enjoy the Holiday Season – and don’t forget to remember.
Co-op Scoop........................1
Holiday Shopping the Co-op Way..2
Did You Know?.....................3
Growing in Windham..........3
Winky’s Food Review..............4
Helen’s Wellness Review.........5 Alice Rubin is currently General Manager of the Willimantic Food Coop, and has
Artisan Holiday Tables.........8 worked here since 1984
The Compost
1
Willimantic Food Co-op
General Manager
Alice Rubin
Holiday Shopping the Co-op Way Patricia Smith
Management Team
Penny Barton-Zuckerman
Financial Manager
Kristin Fortier
Front End Manager
Mark Giangrave
Produce Manager
Bruce Oscar
Facilities Manager
Steve Scanlon
Grocery Manager
Patty Smith
Operations Manager
Staff
Sasha Bajjo-Fournier
Jason Borga
Jonathan Campo
Susan Chasin
John Clark
Chris Demorit
Chris Dubis
Chad Dunnack
Garrett Fitzgibbons
Avery Gratton
Saige Johnson
Emmett McMullan
Jeffrey Nash
Mario Perez
Yani Toledo DeMicheli
Paula Scharpf
Rita Tunador
Yuba Walker
Matthew Woodward
Andy Zhao
While we always strive to offer a unique selection of gift options during the
holiday shopping season, this year we are especially excited about what we’ve got
in store for you. As you fill your cart with ingredients for your home-cooked holiday meals and desserts, you can also count on finding some awesome gifts for those
lucky folks on your list.
For the foodies in your life, the Co-op is of course an excellent place to buy
presents: specialty oils and vinegars, both bottled and in bulk; gourmet preserves,
nut butters, salsas, and sauces; fancy chocolates of all shapes, sizes, and cocoacontent; coffee, tea, cheese – oh, the cheese! Here are a few of Bruce’s recommendations:
• Seal Cove Goat Chevre – Red Peppercorn and Dill w/Garlic – appeals to many
folks’ taste buds and they come pre-decorated in red & green!
• Cato Corner Cow’s Milk Semi-hard Cheese - A variety of unique types of butBoard of Directors
tery, nutty, and flavorful cheese made in our back yard.
Kirk Begg
• Luzzia Fresh Ricotta - Award winning cheese made in New Haven. If you had a
Stephanie Golaski
Bryan O’ Hara
Italian grandmother, she would not let you eat any other type of cheese.
Kathleen Krider
The greatest thing, in my opinion, is that so many of these products are locally
Matthew Kyer
or
regionally
made, not to mention absolutely beautiful and delicious. A pound or
Joanne Todd
two of locally roasted coffee from Quiet Corner Coffee Roasters might be a great
Johnnie Walker
Manager Representative choice to bring to a Yankee Swap, for instance. A pair of reusable glass bottles filled
Alice Rubin
with Ariston olive oil and balsamic vinegar makes a superb gift. A hand-selected
Staff Representative
variety of organic chocolate (Taza, Lake Champlain, Equal Exchange, to name a
Chris Dubis
few) could also make someone very happy. My favorite thing to do for a food gift
Board Scribe
is to fill several bags with a colorful and tasty variety of our bulk items – dried
Andrea Epling
mango, curried cashews, chocolate covered ginger, peanut butter-covered pretzels,
Newsletter
tamari-roasted almonds, etc. etc.; tie up the bags with ribbons and labels, load them
Amy Kalisher
all up in a decorated box or basket, and then, let the enjoyment begin! Another idea
[email protected]
would be to choose a re-usable shopping bag (we have a large selection of colors,
Sasha Bajjo-Fournier
Alice Rubin
styles, and sizes for sale in the store) and stuff it with someone’s favorite packaged
continued on page 6
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The Compost
What’s Growing in Windham? Giving Thanks
Did You Know? Sasha Bajjo-Fournier
The Willimantic Food Coop is a proud partner of Sally Milius
Each year of growth begs its own metaphor. In
the Connecticut 10% Campaign. Together with buyctgrown (creator of the 10% Campaign), the Willimantic our pilot year, we planted seeds. The next year, we
Food Coop is encouraging members of our community put down roots. Our third year was about tilling new
to pledge to themselves and each other: make ten per- growing space. Last year, we focused on nurturing
cent of your regular shopping locally-sourced. Earlier the soil. Now, in our fifth year at GROW Windham,
this fall, Molly, a representative from buyctgrown, we’re thankful for the rich web of support that nurstopped in to the Coop. We met and discussed this tures our programs.
First, we are supported by
exciting concept, and shared what
local items the Food Coop provides ...the Willimantic Food a dedicated staff, each of whom
cultivates one of the branches of
to the community. This doesn’t only
our programming. Kate Callaapply to locally-sourced food, you Coop is encouraging
han has stayed on, after her two
know—there are local plants, wines,
years of FoodCorps, to serve as
and even wool products (nothing like members of our comour Director of K-8 Programs;
warm socks during cold months!) that
with the support of the Windham
can be part of your shopping experi- munity to pledge to
Public Schools she is makence. As a part of buyctgrown, the 10%
ing gardens and healthy food
pledge showcases all the benefits buy- themselves and each
part of the culture of the school
ing local can provide; it also reminds
other: make 10% of
district. Bernadette Brandt has
us that it is quite simple to make a few
adjustments to our pantry and home your regular shopping joined us as the new FoodCorps
Service Member, and taken on
furnishings, to the betterment of our
the Windham Youth CORE, our
neighbors and community members. locally-sourced...
high school program, which is
What locally-sourced items can you
include in your next shopping trip? The choices are lim- now expanding to include projects at high schools
itless. Try making the 10% pledge this season, and ex- across the community. And Ricardo Alavez, our CT
perience Connecticut’s abundance in your own home! Food Justice Youth Corps VISTA Service Member,
is all over town, building partnerships to engage
Visit their website and see some of what your
the community in developing projects that use local
community has to offer: http://www.buyctgrown.
resources to meet local needs.
com
We could not do this work without a wide range
Check out my brief tour of the Food Coop with
of support. Most of this is local: volunteers hours,
Molly, and find more links to local partners:
in-kind donations from local businesses, contribuhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00NcLBFiKqQ
tions from the Coop and Garden Club of Windham,
Sasha Bajjo-Fournier is an Assistant Front End Manager at
grants from local family foundations such as the
the Coop. Her current favorite Coop product is Aqua Vitae
Beagary Charitable Trust and the Jeffrey P. Ossen
Turmeric Sunrise Kombucha, in the bulk aisle.
Hours
Tues-Wed: 10:00-6:00
Thurs-Sat: 10:00-7:00
Sun: 10:00-5:00
Monday: Closed
THRIFT
SHOP
41 High Street
Willimantic, CT
860-456-2569
Continued on page 5
grow your business
branding • strategy • websites • printed materials
860-455-0087 • [email protected]
CA$H FOR
YOUR CLOTHES
williblissboutique.com
The Compost
3
Winky’s Food Review Winky Gordon
Remember the days when the only non-dairy
“milk” alternative was soy milk? And then we got
rice milk, and later almond milk. We now carry not
only the above choices (and coconut milk), but also
Hemp, Oat, Hazelnut “nondairy beverages”(all from
Pacific Foods), Quinoamilk
(Suzie’s), and Cashew
Milk (So Delicious). The
variety is astonishing,
practically mind-boggling.
Within each kind, you can
probably find sweetened
vs. unsweetened, and
vanilla vs. plain. Some
are organic, some simply
“all natural.” I use nondairy milks for cooking, in
hot beverages, and – my
favorite – with granola.
I tried Pacific Natural
Foods’ organic Oat NonDairy Beverage (original flavor), all natural Hemp
Non-Dairy Beverage (vanilla flavor), and all natural Hazelnut Non-Dairy Beverage (original flavor).
They’re all sweet, although the oat is naturally so –
no added sweetener. I’ve used the oat to lighten and
sweeten Teecino, and liked it a lot. Using it in savory
mushroom pancakes was a mistake, however; they
were just weird. All three would be good bases for
smoothies, protein shakes, hot chocolate. Unsweetened, the hazelnut and hemp might be good soup bases.
The hazelnut – made from Oregon hazelnuts- is definitely nutty. The hemp has an interesting “undertaste”
going on, maybe a tiny bit bitter, but not in a bad way.
The hazelnut and hemp are thicker (and prettier) than
the oat, which is an unfortunate color - kind of insipid
looking, if a beverage can look that way. An interesting fact: oat milk (not Pacific Foods’) is easily found
in convenience stores in Ecuador.
All three beverages contain filtered water,
thickener (xanthan gum, carageenan, gellan gum),
added vitamins A, D2, B2, and are stabilized with
either disodium or tricalcium phosphate (I’m going
to let you look that up…sounds okay). The hazelnut
also contains hazelnuts, naturally, as well as brown
rice sweetener and sea salt. The hemp vanilla has
shelled hemp seed, brown rice syrup, natural vanilla
“with other natural flavors”. And the oat contains
organic oats, oat bran, and sea salt.
Pacific Foods reports that it does not use GMOaltered ingredients in any of its products and that
all ingredients are “Certified
to the source.” This means
“tracking every ingredient to
ensure food safety and traceability.” Sounds vague to me,
but here’s the amazing thing
about Pacific Foods: it’s independently owned. It is not a
subsidiary of Kellog’s, Kraft,
General Mills, or one of the
other major corporate food
producers. For an illuminating
look at the unnatural relationship between many “natural
foods” products and the megafood industry, go to Cornucopia Institute’s chart by Dr.
Philip Howard from Michigan
State University. It spells it all out – the coopting of
many previously small, righteous food producers.
About the Quinoamilk and the Cashew Milk…
both of the ones I bought were unsweetened. The
quinoamilk has a sweetness on its own, similar to the
oat milk. The cashew milk does not, making it not
my preferred choice for adding to hot beverages. But
it served well in a lentil soup I made, and is just fine
over granola, which I usually find way too sweet any
way. In addition to quinoa, the quinoamilk contains
the thickeners, stabilizers, and added vitamins listed
above. The cashew milk has a long list of ingredients
that also includes canola oil, selenium, and zinc oxide. Both products state they do not contain GMOs.
And here’s the scoop on the companies making
them: Suzie’s appears to be independently owned,
although it says it’s manufactured for Good Groceries Company. I couldn’t get much info on them
otherwise. So Delicious, on the other hand, was just
(September 2014) bought by White Wave. The contradiction here is that So Delicious proudly identifies
its product as being made without GMOS, while
White Wave has contributed funds to defeat proposals requiring labeling of GMO ingredients. What’s
wrong with this picture?! The Cornucopia Institute,
again, has illuminating charts of which natural foods
continued on page 7
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The Compost
WHAT’S GROWING, continued from page 3
Family Foundation, and local bank foundations such
as Liberty Bank, New Alliance Bank, and the SBM
Charitable Trust.
Our support network expanded significantly
this fall, with two grants from the USDA, to fund the
Windham Community Food Network and the revitalization of the Willimantic Farmers’ Market. We
are grateful for the opportunities that this funding
will bring. We are also mindful, to invest it so that
it will continue to develop the web of relationships
that nurture our program and community.
Sally Milius is a former high school teacher who decided
four years ago that school gardens are a lot more fun than
classrooms, so she joined forces with the Co-op to found
GROW Windham, a collaboration of community partners that
promotes access to healthy food throughout the community.
PRESENTS:
Parsonsfield (Formerly Poor Old Shine)
Can Kickers and Hanging Hills
A Fundraising Event for Vulturetown Arts!
Bruce Bellingham Auditorium
Windham Town Hall, Willimantic, CT
Saturday, December 13th, 2014
Doors open at 7:00pm.
Tickets are $15 online at
www.parsonsfield.com
or $20 at the door.
For more info visit:
https://www.facebook.com/VulturetownArts
Helen’s Wellness Review Helen Scanlon
For this edition of The Compost, I reviewed
Acure Pure Mint and Echinacea Stem Cell Shampoo
and Conditioner, a new item on the Co-op’s shelves.
First, allow me to share a product description,
because it’s pretty darn great:
Pure Mint + Echinacea Stem Cell Shampoo
by Acure Organics builds dynamic volume without
stripping natural oils or creating build-up. For hair
that feels thicker, fuller and uplifted. Quinoa protein extract supports keratin. Babassu oil provides
lightweight moisture for root and scalp maintenance.
Echinacea Stem Cells promote cellular regeneration
at the root level. Safe for color-treated hair. Forget
the neighbors---turn up the volume!
The ingredients are paraben and cruelty free,
and consist of gentle, yet highly effective, organic
plant-based, fair-trade ingredients.
That all sounds awesome—but—how does it
work?
Like a boss.
It didn’t strip my hair. It made it fuller. It made
it smell great. The conditioner didn’t leave my hair
flat and dull—it complemented the shampoo perfectly. It got the job done and then some.
Not all shampoos and conditioners are alike.
Hair needs special care, just like our skin. Don’t
just dump any old soap-y product on that wonderful mane of yours. Treat yourself to an outstanding
product that doesn’t dry out your scalp and dull your
shine.
The conditioner doesn’t coat the hair and weigh
it down. Use just a dime-sized drop, and that’s
all folks. And wow, does it smell amazing. If you
haven’t tried a mint shampoo and conditioner for
those tired, sluggish, molasses-in-January-uphill
mornings—what the heck are you waiting for?
Acure’s minty scent is not overpowering (no vapoContinued on page 7
The Compost
5
HOLIDAY SHOPPING, continued from page 2
food from the center aisles - think mac n’ cheese,
Indian simmer sauces, Scharfenberger baking chocolate, nice tea, specialty hot sauce or spicy mustard.
The Co-op staff members are very knowledgeable
and enthusiastic about our
products – they’d be happy to
make some recommendations
if you’re having trouble choosing.
The Wellness department,
too, offers so many delightful items, local and exotic, for
gift-giving. 1 You’ll find local, all-natural bar soaps, luscious lotions and creams,
shower gels, and much more.
Here are a few highlights:
• Nourish Organics Body Lotions in Citrus Spice, Almond
Vanilla, Fresh Fig, Wild Berries,
Lavender Mint. These are entirely CERTIFIED ORGANIC –a
first for the Wellness department!
• Aura Cacia Individual Foam
Bath Packets for Kids in Lavender, Eucalyptus, and Tangerine. Perfect for stocking stuffers.
• Pam Brundage Body Lotions in Almond and Rose
Geranium scents, handmade locally with essential
oils in an all natural lotion base, bottled in glass.
• Wild Yonder Handmade Soaps: Wild Yonder is
committed to Non-GMO, high quality, plant-based
ingredients. Organic, palm-free, handmade in Connecticut.
Our General Merchandise section is also
well-stocked this year,
with a brilliant array of
Fair Trade, hand-made
knit winter-wear for kids
and adults from Andesgifts; organic, stripey,
starry, colorful (or plain)
socks by Maggie’s Clean
Clothes and Organic
Threads, gorgeous calendars, beeswax candles
(tapers, votives, and molded), incense, hand-woven
African baskets, and the list goes on…plenty to
choose from for special gifts and stocking stuffers.
…But for something extra-special, you really
must visit our Holiday
Tables in the Co-op Café
on the weekends between
Thanksgiving and Christmas. Due to the popularity
of our Holiday Tables last
year, we’ve added a third
day of craft vending each
weekend during the season. Every Friday (excluding November 28 – we’re
closed), Saturday, and
Sunday, from 10am-4pm,
November 29 through December 21, local artisans
will be selling their goods
at the Co-op. Goodies
like hand-made beauty
products, knitted goods,
wreaths, jewelry, pottery
and much more will be
available on a rotating basis during the times mentioned above. Call ahead or check the vendor schedule on our website to see when your favorite artisan
will be here. [Practical note: sales of goods at the
Holiday Tables are independent of Co-op purchases
and will be processed by the individual vendors, so
it’s a good idea to bring cash,
if you’re interested.]
And last, but not least,
I’d like to introduce the
Co-op’s new Gift Cards.
Printed on eco-friendly,
sustainably-harvested birch
wood at Night Owl Paper
Goods2, and designed by
local artist Amy Kalisher3,
our new Co-op Gift Cards
are beautiful, convenient,
and biodegradable. They can be loaded with any
dollar amount, and then re-loaded and re-used when
1 Check out Helen’s Wellness reviews in this and past issues
of the Compost for additional recommendations.
2 http://nightowlpapergoods.com
3 http://www.amykstudio.com
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The Compost
the balance gets low. For those of you concerned
with the Co-op’s credit- and debit-card processing
fees (aren’t we all?), but find it difficult to remember to carry cash or inconvenient to write checks, a
Gift Card is the perfect solution: load it up, shop it
down, then re-load. The only cost to the Co-op is the
initial purchase of the physical cards – there are no
processing fees. The new cards make a great gift for
yourself and others.
Happy shopping!
Patty Smith has been a member of the Co-op for 17 years,
and has been on staff since 2007. She has served as Point
of Sale Coordinator, Assistant Bookkeeper, HR Representative
and is currently the Operations Manager. She lives in Storrs,
with husband Andy and daughter Emma.
FOOD REVIEW, continued from page 4
producers are involved in keeping GMO information
out of the public’s eye.
Doing the food review has been kind of a
bummer this time – all this hard information about
the food industry, corporatization, GMOs…The
good news is that I now have about a gallon left
of non-dairy milk in my fridge - way too much to
drink before it goes bad, so what shall I do with it? I
know! I’m going to make a chocolate potion to bring
to a Halloween gig, maybe add some amaretto, or
kahlua, or some other spirit… Cheers! See you at
our store.
Winky Gordon has been a Co-op member since its incarnation
as a Main Street store-front. She’s so glad it’s right down the
road. Most of that time she has been a working member. As you
probably know, she loves chocolate.
HELEN’S WELLNESS continued from page 5
rub here!) but it gently tickles the olfactory senses
to get your posterior in gear. The key word here is
gently. It’s not pushy, I promise.
Acure is a very good product—and, yes—I am
picky. I’ve used the supposedly top-notch stuff and
thrown it away after the first use. I’ve used the Acure
every day since I got it, and it’s almost time to get
some more. That’s a Big Deal for me.
Gotta love all this good stuff at the Co-op!
Browse those aisles and take a peek. I’ll see you
there!
Helen Scanlon is a local author and artist. Her book, My
Horse, My Heart: The Morgan Horses of the University of
Connecticut, is available at the Co-op. She is married to the
Co-op’s grocery guru, Steve. They live in Hampton with their
three cats Big Boy, Skeeter and Mousekowitz.
Are you paying too much in bank fees?
Do you wish you could get better rates?
Are you tired of talking to a computer?
Check out Northeast Family today,
for all of your banking needs.
Savings
checking
CD’s
IRA’s
loans
credit/debit cards and more.
800-201-2031
361 Boston Post Rd., North Windham
233 Main St., Manchester
www.nefamily.coop
The Compost
7
Local Artisans
Holiday Tables
The Co-op will again be hosting local artists and crafts
folk selling their wares in the Co-op café this holiday
season! Look for Holiday Tables every Friday, Saturday
and Sunday starting Saturday, November 29th through
Sunday, December 21st from 10 am to 4 pm.
Stuck for gift ideas?
8
Consider giving a Gift Card
from the Willimantic Food
Co-op!
Check out our selection
of fine knitted items from
Andes!
Available at check-out in any amount!
Gifts for all ages and sizes!
Check out our selection of
books by local authors and
artists, covering a wide range
of subjects!
Check out our selection of
beeswax candles, mobiles
and other crafts by local
artisans!
Something for everyone!
A great way to support our local economy!
The Compost